Facts & Questions

What is the Buy America Act?

Certain Federal transportation projects and state and local government projects utilize federal funds. Within these projects, US-made iron foundry products must be used. Spring City’s products satisfy the requirements of the Buy America Act. We are willing to provide legal action to protect this act. We take pride in keeping our production on our soil and we are going to do everything to keep it that way. The penalties related to this act range from reducing the contract price to exclusion from future procurement programs or even a fine and jail time.

What is the difference between grey iron, aluminum, ductile iron and bi-metals?

Aluminum

Cast aluminum is the most flexible and forgiving of all legitimate lamppost materials. It is soft, light weight, melts at relatively low temperatures (approx. 1200 deg) and can be cast in fairly thin sections. Aluminum is also easy to finish, machine and can be cast in small sections and welded together structurally to create pedestrian scale lampposts. As a result, aluminum is a very cost effective alternative to authentic one-piece ornate light standards. Due to its lightweight, installation can be achieved on smaller budgets with little to no heavy machine requirements.

Disadvantages: Although aluminum is very workable it is also a very soft metal. Cast poles and bases are susceptible to dings and nicks even through routine pedestrian activity. Also as aluminum ages, it hardens, becomes more brittle, and is predisposed to fatigue failure.

Grey iron

Grey or “gray” iron is the original cast iron and has been cast in various forms for thousands of years. It has withstood the test of time due to its tremendous compressive strength and dampening capabilities. For this reason it is still used today over steel or other engineered materials in housings where tensile strength is not critical, like engine blocks, pump housings, valve bodies, and electrical boxes. It has the lowest pouring temperature of the ferrous metals (approx 2700 deg), which is reflected in its high fluidity and its ability to be cast into intricate shapes. Gray iron has excellent machining qualities yielding a surface with excellent wear characteristics. The resistance of gray iron to scoring and galling is universally recognized. If longevity and durability are of primary importance, there can be no comparison between gray iron and aluminum.

Disadvantages: Although gray iron is extremely hard, it is also very dense, causing the weight per volume to be more than twice that of aluminum. This makes the use of construction equipment during installation a necessity. Gray iron’s strength in compression does not translate to bending; this can lead to many of the same banner and pole accessory loading restrictions that exist for cast aluminum poles.

Ductile iron

Ductile iron, also called ductile cast iron or nodular cast iron, is a type of cast iron invented in 1942. While most varieties of cast iron are brittle, ductile iron is much more ductile, as the name implies. This is achieved through complex metallurgy and higher pouring temperatures. Ductile Iron has been successful because it offers a combination of versatility and properties not available in any of its rivals. Its castability, machinability, damping properties, and economy of production are almost equal to those for which Gray Iron is famous, but its mechanical properties - strength, wear resistance, fatigue strength, toughness and ductility are competitive with many cast, forged and fabricated steel components.

The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) are the nationally recognized standards organization for the analysis of lighting structures. They acknowledge the bending strength of ductile iron to be 3 to 4 times that of cast aluminum and grey iron. If your application requires, or may require some time in the future, banner arms, signage, flags or other significant load requirements ductile iron will probably be the only material that will meet the AASHTO wind loading requirements. Please be sure to require the manufacturer of your chosen light standard to supply calculations for your specific application. To reference ductile iron benefits, click here.

What are your standard paint colors?

Our standard six paint colors are classic black, verde green, bottle green, grey iron, dark bronze and long beach blue. These rich colors form our standard selection, and can be specified by name. We can supply our product in virtually any color, and can provide color matched to specific existing colors as well. If you would prefer a color other than one of these six, simply provide us with a chip or swatch of the color you desire.

Spring City is proud to work in conjunction with Sherwin Williams to supply the best possible industrial prime and finish paint system on the market today. For detailed paint specification information on the Sherwin Williams Recoatable Epoxy Primer or Acrolon 218 HS Acrylic Polyurethane Paint Systems, please visit them at www.sherwinwilliams.com.

2. Over time our post and luminaire finish has been scratched and chipped; and is fading as well. What can we do?

a. If they are scratched or chipped down to bare metal, sand or wire brush the rust [iron] or oxidization [aluminum] until clean. Then prime the area with Sherwin Williams Kem Bond® HS Universal Metal Primer Followed by touchup with Sherwin Williams Poly Lon Hp.

b. If they are faded there are several options based on the circumstances.

I. If you know what the original paint is; and it is a urethane. Clean the surface with Sherwin Williams HurrisafeTM Industrial S910 Paint Prep. Then, clear coat it with Diamond-Clad® Clear Coat Urethane by Sherwin Williams to return it to its original color and a radiant long lasting shine.

II. If you do not know what the original paint is: You may try a test patch of Sherwin Williams Diamond-Clad® Clear Coat Urethane in an inconspicuous location to insure no adverse reaction on the part of the original paint occurs. If that is the case, you may proceed with the application of the HurrisafeTM Industrial S910 Paint Prep and follow by applying the Diamond-Clad® Clear Coat Urethane.

c. You may coat the entire surface with a barrier coat such as Sherwin Williams Kem Bond® HS Universal Metal Primer. Then, recoat with a finish of Poly Lon Hp following datasheet recommendations which are supplied by Sherwin Williams.

d. Whatever the circumstances, we have found the application of Sherwin Williams Diamond-Clad® Clear Coat Urethane even after repainting, prolongs the UV protection and in turn delays the need to refinish in the future.

3. What do we do if our luminaires malfunction?

a. First, check the lamp to verify that it is not burnt out. Second, check your power source to the luminaire. If both appear to be functioning properly, contact Spring City Electric for advice.

4. How can we replace our lost or broken access doors?

a. Replacement doors can be ordered from Spring City Electric.

5. How can we upgrade our luminaire's performance?

a. Please contact Spring City Electric directly or your local Spring City representative for information concerning the most recent advancements that have been made in outdoor lighting.

About Spring City

All of Spring City’s operations are located within one facility, which consists of a foundry, engineering, sales, customer service and much more!